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Life after sexual trauma and incarceration: a restorative model for wholeness for women who suffered sexual violence

The abuse of a woman’s body had been a normative practice since the recordings of Old Testament narratives. This study is designed to confront the inherent gender bias that contributed to the devaluation and abuse of a female body, especially for women in minority communities. How did such a transgression become acceptable behavior for men, while women are penalized and even harshly judged for being the victim? Once the pattern of abused has been identified, the research will show sexual traumatization detrimentally impacts the overall behavior of the victim, occasionally leading to criminal activities which further exacerbate mental health issues never properly addressed. Women who are violated suffer mentally and emotionally, yet minimal attention is given to a woman to acknowledge and address the impact of the violation. The research consists of a historical autopsy of sexually traumatized women in the biblical narratives, throughout certain periods of slavery and its aftermath and in society in the 21st century. The goal was to determine if common trends are present for women who endured sexual assault. How did they survive, and did they manage to lead a productive life after trauma? It will also examine the failure of society to support victims, by providing a pathway toward healing and wholeness. The research will show that when the biblical narratives are theologically reexamined, the sacred text provides a strategic plan to help any woman recover from any sexual trauma they endured. It will conclude with a vision life workbook to help women begin the difficult work of moving forward after sexual traumatization.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/41314
Date18 July 2020
CreatorsSimpson, Nicole B.
ContributorsCalvillo, Jonathan
Source SetsBoston University
Languageen_US
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis/Dissertation
RightsAttribution 4.0 International, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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